How to Own Your Role: From Good Intentions to Great Actions

Hey Name!

It’s happened- we have reached the final stretch in my series about owning your role. I hope you’ve been enjoying this series as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them. For the final email, let’s talk about a topic that can be a little tricky: intention vs. action.

We like to think of ourselves as good people with good intentions, don’t we? It’s natural to evaluate ourselves based on our intentions. When we make a mistake, we are able to cut ourselves some slack because we know we didn’t have the intention of messing up. However, when we assess others, we do so based on their actions. Why?

Well, it’s simple. We can’t read minds (yet, at least!). So we have no way of knowing someone’s intentions unless they explicitly tell us. We can only observe their actions, and that’s what we use to form our opinions of them

So, to be a valuable team player, it’s not enough to have good intentions. You gotta show up and make things happen. Follow through on your commitments, communicate effectively with your team, and meet your deadlines. That’s how you earn their trust and respect.

As Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Action expresses priorities.” And we all know he was a pretty smart cookie. So let’s take his advice and show our team that we mean business by taking action.

Here’s a real-life example: Let’s say you promised your team a report by a certain deadline. Even if you had the best of intentions if you don’t deliver, your team won’t care about your intentions – they’ll care about the fact that you didn’t deliver. On the other hand, if you deliver that report on time, they’ll see you as reliable and trustworthy. Boom!

So, my challenge to you is this: next time you find yourself thinking about your intentions, think about what actions you can take to make those intentions a reality. Because let’s be real, when it comes to owning your role, actions speak way louder than words (and intentions).

Proactive, Productive, and Profitable,

Dino